Chromatics - Closer to Grey

Pitchfork 71

Chromatics set their surprise “seventh” album at the witching hour, telling a sometimes-muddled tale of heartbroken lovers reaching out to the spirit realm.

The Guardian 60

(Italians Do It Better)
Smart production, corrupted sounds and existential dread set Kill for Love’s successor apart from schlockier 80s pop reincarnations

Chromatics are among the decade’s defining musical architects – or at least its refitters, given their darkly glamorous update on 80s pop’s jewel tones and gothic inclinations. While they didn’t hit the commercial peaks of the bands they influenced with their spots on the Drive OST and 2012’s Kill for Love, their elusiveness sustained the intrigue: follow-up Dear Tommy was due in 2014 but remains unreleased.

In its place is surprise album Closer to Grey. Chromatics’ influence means there’s a sense in which its haunted suburban chilliness sounds old hat. But the production is smarter than that sound’s schlockier Stranger Things reincarnation. You’re No Good bears the sleek aerodynamism of Behaviour-era Pet Shop Boys, and the surfaces are corrupted: blown-out bass (Twist the Knife) and overdriven guitar (Touch Red) indicate the dread at the album’s heart.